USHA Helice National Championship
July 23, 2022
Black Prairie Helice, part of Prairie Wildlife near West Point, is hosting more than 150 shooters this weekend for the U.S. Helice Association National Championship. The event began Thursday and will conclude today.
Helice is a shotgun game that blends the accessibility of clay targets with the true, erratic unpredictability of wild birds, according to a press release from Prairie Wildlife. The game was invented in Europe early in the 1900s, but it’s found a home in the United States, especially in the South.
This is the venue’s first time hosting the national championship, and it hosts other sanctioned competitions throughout the year.
Members of the event crew add Helice targets to the five release points in the field on Friday. Photo by Austin Frayser/Special to The Dispatch
Jimmy Bryan, founder of Prairie Wildlife, looks on Friday as shooters compete. Photo by Austin Frayser/Special to The Dispatch
Railford Carter of Tupelo grabs a shotgun during the Helice national championship hosted at Prairie Wildlife. Photo by Austin Frayser/Special to The Dispatch
Rodney Johnson takes a shot as his shell is being released during Saturday’s USHA National Championship. Photo by Austin Frayser/Special to The Dispatch
Shotguns sit on a rack at Prairie Wildlife awaiting competitors to use them. Photo by Austin Frayser/Special to The Dispatch
Participant Beau Thomas walks up to the target field during Friday’s USHA national championship event at Prairie Wildlife. Photo by Austin Frayser/Special to The Dispatch
Beau Thomas reloads his shotgun after his second attempt at the clay targets. Photo by Austin Frayser/Special to The Dispatch
Rick Mein waits on a Helice to release on his command before shooting the target from the air. Photo by Austin Frayser/Special to The Dispatch
